For generations, people of diverse origins have lived and worked along the narrow streets of this colourful and distinctive neighbourhood.

In the mid-19th century these streets were laid over the Denison family estate.

The tightly knit blocks of businesses, homes and community institutions evolved as successive waves of immigrants, attracted by the relative affordability of the area, added their cultural imprint to the city.

The district was first occupied by British workers, then by Jewish immigrants who converted the Victorian houses into small small family-run stores by adding makeshift ground-floor shops.

As a result, the area was known for decades as the Jewish market. After the Second World War, new Canadians from Italy, Portugal, Western Europe, the Caribbean, and Asia were drawn here, each in turn adding to the vibrant life of this culturally diverse marketplace.

Below, beyond the park and houses of the streets of Kensington Market, the financial district of downtown Toronto and the CN tower.

The synagogue is next to the park, part of the rich history of this place.

Tolerance and integration have been vital to the development of this cosmopolitan community, which is distinguished by constant renewal.

Filled with scents and sounds from around the world, Kensington Market recalls the history of the Canadian urban immigrant experience.

In a short time, we met some wonderful people from different parts of the world, it really is fascinating experiencing life in one of the most diverse cities in the world.

BeaverTails and Queues de Castor are a Canadian-based chain of pastry stands operated by BeaverTails Canada Inc. The chain’s namesake product is a line of fried dough pastries, individually hand stretched to resemble a beaver’s tail.

The chain originated in Killaloe, Ontario in 1978 and opened its first permanent store in Ottawa two years later. It now has franchises and licenses in four countries: Canada, the United States, South Korea, and Japan.

The BeaverTails pastry is similar to several other fried dough pastries and is topped with a choice of sweet condiments and confections, such as whipped cream, banana slices, crumbled oreos, cinnamon sugar, and chocolate hazelnut.

If you have not tried BeaverTails, you must try, especially if you have a sweet tooth like me and you like the look of the toppings above, scrumptious is certainly one way of describing them!

Below is a fine example of how a Beaver Tail can be enjoyed, she was so engrossed (as you can see from her eyes) that she was oblivious of me in front of her.